New Releases for May 5, 2017

May 4, 2017

CDs + Vinyl:

A Lot Like Birds – Divisi CD/LP (Equal Vision)

Divisi (“a directive in ensemble music that instructs one section of instruments to divide into two or more separate sections”) is the fourth full-length studio effort from Sacramento, CA experimental post-hardcore act A Lot Like Birds and first since 2013’s No Place. The album finds Cory Lockwood and new bassist Matt Coate handling vocal duties in the wake of the departure of singer Kurt Travis (Dance Gavin Dance) who worked on the band’s previous two albums. Emotional, chaotic, haunting and intense, the band has cited artists like Sigur Rós, Björk, Pedro The Lion, Mew, Daughter, Radiohead, My Morning Jacket and Death Cab For Cutie as influences on the diverse new record.

Afghan Whigs – In Spades CD/LP+MP3/Cassette (Sub Pop)

From its evocative cover art to the troubled spirits haunting its halls, In Spades casts a spell that challenges the listener to unpack its dark metaphors and spectral imagery. On the one hand, it is as quintessentially Afghan Whigs as anything the group has ever done – fulfilling its original mandate to explore the missing link between howling Midwestern punk like Die Kreuzen and Hüsker Dü, The Temptations’ psychedelic soul symphonies, and the expansive hard-rock tapestries of Led Zeppelin and Lynyrd Skynyrd. At the same time, this new record continues to push beyond anything in the Whigs’ previous repertoire – another trademark, along with the explosive group dynamic captured on the recording. “This is the first time since Black Love [the Whigs’ 1996 noir masterpiece] that we’ve done a full-blown band album,” Greg Dulli says. The joys, sorrows, and upheavals of innocence and experience echo throughout In Spades: it powerfully documents where The Afghan Whigs have been, and where they might go next.

Angel Snow – Magnetic CD (Nettwerk)

The music of Angel Snow is moving, ethereal and at times, chillingly honest. The Nashville based singer songwriter’s music is always evolving; combining her accomplished songwriting with haunting, engaging vocals and electronic textures. This new album combines her Americana roots with these more electronic textures, creating a fresh sonic landscape that is at once raw and beguiling.

At The Drive-In – in·ter a·li·a CD/LP+MP3 (Rise)

“Ever had that feeling when introducing a friend to a band you love – the envy that they get to discover them for the first time, to hear it with fresh ears? Well, At The Drive In are making a comeback almost two decades after Relationship Of Command with in•ter a•li•a. It feels like in•ter a•li•a quite literally picks up where At The Drive In left off, with familiar chord attacks from Omar Rodriguez Lopez and the yelping emotion of Cedric Bixler. ‘No Wolf Like The Present’ and leading single ‘Governed By Contagions’ could have come directly from the band’s 2000 release, with the exception of the slightly more solid production. It’s still got the post-‘90s prog obsession, but it’s been cleaned up a bit. in•ter a•li•a does avoid being overly nostalgic with tracks like ‘Pendulum In A Peasant Dress’ and ‘Incurably Innocent’ which seem in turn to swing At The Drive In’s new release from one side to the other of their sonic spectrum. ‘Pendulum…’ takes the stuttering skat-like vocal performance of Bixler to an extreme, while ‘…Innocent’ seems closer to ‘I Brought You My Bullets…’ era My Chemical Romance – and no that’s not a bad thing, get over it” – Skateism. [Limited color vinyl pressing also available.]

Big Walnuts Yonder – Big Walnuts Yonder CD/LP+MP3 (Sargent House)

Big Walnuts Yonder is bassist/vocalist Mike Watt (Minutemen, The Stooges), guitarist Nels Cline (Wilco, Nels Cline Singers), drummer Greg Saunier (Deerhoof) and guitarist/vocalist Nick Reinhart (Tera Melos). It is not a supergroup. It’s worlds colliding, says Mike Watt. Four exceptional musicians whose work spans multiple genres and generations, Big Walnuts Yonder is a monumental endeavor that’s more than the sum of its parts. The results are a truly epic album defying categorization, where one might hear elements of proto-punk, free jazz, power pop, experimental music, psych-rock and your first teenage acid trip all in one.

Black Lips – Satan’s Graffiti Or God’s Art? CD (Vice)

Produced by Sean Lennon at his studio compound in upstate New York throughout 2016, Satan’s Graffiti Or God’s Art? stays true to Black Lips’ original blistering take on fuzzy, dirty rock n’ roll. The album features contributions by Saul Adamczewski of Fat White Family and guest vocals by Yoko Ono. [Vinyl edition due July 14.]

Blondie – Pollinator CD/LP+MP3 (BMG)

Pollinator is Blondie’s 11th album. Alongside original band members Chris Stein, Debbie Harry and drummer Clem Burke, the album also features contributions from Johnny Marr, Sia, Dev Hynes, Charli XCX, Dave Sitek (TV On The Radio), Nick Valensi (The Strokes) and The Gregory Brothers. “Pollinator starts strong with four hook-driven tracks, each a unique pop offering accented by song-launching drumrolls, funk-inspired riffs, and plenty of synth for ears to swim in. Joan Jett duets with Debbie Harry on album opener ‘Doom Or Destiny,’ a fitting match that pairs the rough edge in Jett’s voice to Harry’s sweeter croon. She’s not the only guest, not by a long shot, and it’s the corollary talent that winds up making Pollinator such a success” – Consequence Of Sound. [Limited edition color vinyl pressing also available.]

Bonny ‘Prince’ Billy – Best Troubador CD/LP/Cassette (Drag City)

With Best Troubador, Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy pays homage to a long-time and forever hero, the late Merle Haggard. A singer who, some 25 years previously, first performed in public by playing a Merle Haggard song, Bonny has often cited Merle’s work in performance, on records and in conversation with anyone who was around, even talking to Merle himself for Filter magazine in 2009. The songs sung on Best Troubador are pulled from all over — from Haggard’s third album in 1967 through to his 47th in 2011 — but this is no simple hits compilation. Capable only of occupying a shared space between himself and Merle Haggard, Bonny chose personal favorites, singing the songs he wanted to sing, to find Merle and himself together in the music. Only two of Hag’s thirty-eight (!) country number ones are included, and only two others that charted at all. Seven of the sixteen songs are from his later period, after his long run at the top of the country charts had ended, but before encroaching mortality could finally cease the singular and indefatigable creativity of Merle Haggard.

Brother Ali – All The Beauty In This Whole Life CD/2xLP+MP3 (Rhymesayers)

Over the past 17 years, Brother Ali has earned wide critical acclaim for his deeply personal, socially conscious, and inspiring brand of hip-hop. “This entire album is based on the reality that beauty is the splendor of truth,” says the Minneapolis MC. “Beauty in all of its forms is the outward manifestation of love and virtue. It soothes the soul and pulls it gently toward the truth it communicates. Every word and note of this album is intended to either reflect beauty, or expose the ugliness that blocks us from living lives of meaning.” [Limited clear vinyl pressing also available.]

Lovely Creatures was compiled by Nick Cave and founding member Mick Harvey, with help from the current Bad Seeds. Band members past and present raided their personal archives to provide previously unseen photos and memorabilia which have been collected into a beautiful hardcover book, along with a series of original essays. The book is available as part of the limited edition Super Deluxe album collection that also comes with a two-hour DVD containing rare and unseen archive footage. Lovely Creatures is available in four formats, all featuring personal and rare photographs of the band. “There are some people out there who just don’t know where to start with The Bad Seeds. Others know the catalogue better than I do! This release is designed to be a way into three decades of music making. That’s a lot of songs. The songs we have chosen are the ones that have stuck around, for whatever reason. Some songs are those that demand to be played live. Others are lesser songs that are personal favorites of ours. Others are just too big and have too much history to leave out. And there are those that didn’t make it, poor things. They are the ones you must discover by yourselves.” — Nick Cave

Cayetana – New Kind Of Normal CD/LP (Plum)

Coupling expertly crafted, hooky pop songs like lead single “Mesa,” with sparse, dark, and deeply emotional synth-laden tracks like “World,” New Kind Of Normal is a record that captures quiet moments of crushing vulnerability and the hardened highs of personal strength with equal grace.

Cat Clyde – Ivory Castanets CD/LP (Cinematic Music)

Cat Clyde is a new artist out of Stratford, Ontario. His debut album is a fresh take on the classic sounds of yesteryear; Clyde breathes new life into the velvety vocal, tack-piano, slide-guitar-style that can instantly walk you through the swinging doors of a packed saloon.

Avishai Cohen – Cross My Palm With Silver CD (ECM)

For his second ECM album Avishai Cohen presents a program which puts the focus on the ensemble, on teamwork, with a quartet of the highest caliber. The adroit, almost telepathic interplay among the musicians allows Cohen to soar, making it clear why he is one of the most talked-about jazz musicians on the contemporary scene. [Vinyl edition due June 2.]

Alice Coltrane remains a singular figure on the fringe of American music but her appeal is growing. While Coltrane’s music is gaining wider acceptance there is an entire era of her recorded output that remains obscure, almost as if by design. Her four self-published, devotional albums of the ‘80s and ‘90s were recorded during a period in which she had withdrawn from secular life. They were manufactured and distributed in limited quantities amongst her spiritual community. Operating outside of the constraints of the commercial recording industry Coltrane was free of external pressures whether monetary or deadline. She recorded this music totally on her own terms. The resulting compositions synthesized her spiritual and musical outlook into a highly original work that is unique unto herself.

Pascal Comelade – Le Rocanrolorama Abrégé CD/2xLP+CD (Because Music)

Rocanrolorama Abrégé (abbreviated “rockandrolorama” in English) is the short version of the complete works and reworks of Pascal Comelade, published at the end of 2016 as a six-CD box set. It was conceived with the double LP format in mind: four sides with six tracks each, which you can listen to in the right order, from start to finish, according to a logical, thought-out progression for each side (slow tempo, medium tempo, orchestrations, electricity, etc.), paying tribute to the concept behind the collection rhythm and blues formidable.

Debut album from the critically acclaimed dream pop project of vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Jackson Phillips.

Mac DeMarco – This Old Dog CD/LP+MP3 (Captured Tracks)

Before you ancients out there turn your heads and scoff at the premise of a twenty-something rock-and-roll goofball calling himself an old-anything, consider this: said perpetrator, he who answers to the name Mac DeMarco, has spent the better part of his time thus far writing, recording, and releasing an album of his own music pretty much every calendar flip, and pretty much on his own. This Old Dog makes for his fifth in just over half a decade — bringing the total to three LPs and two EPs. According to the DMV, MacBriare Samuel Lanyon DeMarco is 26. But in working-dog years, ol’ Mac here could easily qualify for social security. To stay gold, turns out all he needed was some new tricks. [Limited edition white vinyl pressing also available.]

Djustin – Voyagers CD/LP (Labrador)

Swedish American duo Djustin released their debut EP Tryst in May last year to much critical praise. Stunning electronic pop for fans of Chromatics, Chvrches, Austra, Robyn and Chairlift.

Emperor X – Oversleepers International CD (Tiny Engines)

Chad Matheny, who Alternative Press described as “a spastic, legally blind, nomadic songwriter whose performances transform venues/living rooms/arts spaces into punk rock micro-raves,” has been releasing music under the Emperor X moniker since 1998. His recordings and live shows fuse the punk songwriter tradition of Billy Bragg with the experimental tape loop minimalism of William Basinski, and reveal incurable obsessions with transportation infrastructure, modernist literature, and lo-fi Chicago house tracks. [Vinyl edition due May 19.]

Faust – Fresh Air CD/LP+CD (Bureau B)

Faust’s new album Fresh Air differs in several respects from its predecessor, Just Us. The recordings were made at Jean-Hervé Péron’s rehearsal studio in Schiphorst in northern Germany, hypnotic pieces with the kind of noisemaking the band is known for.

The Flaming Lips – On Board The International Space Station: Concert For Peace CD (WB)

Seven live(ish) tracks from Oczy Mlody reimagined as afictional/fantastical live Flaming Lips performance on the International Space Station. [Vinyl edition due June 16.]

Colt Ford – Love Hope Faith CD (Average Joe’s Ent.)

Ford’s sixth album includes guests Brad Paisley on “Lookin’ For A Hand Out,” Toby Keith on “Time Flie”” and Lady Antebellum’s Charles Kelley and brother Josh on “Young Americans.”

Forest Swords – Compassion CD/LP+MP3 (Ninja Tune)

Compassion is a response to the uncertain, aggressive new world were experiencing and communicating within, distilling it into a unique sound territory: composer Matthew Barnes’ exploration of the mid-point between ecstasy and melancholy, artificial and human feels timely and affecting; a celebration of primal connections, life itself, and an anxious glance at the direction we’re heading. The result is an assured, compelling, vital body of work, tying together the ancient and future: weaving swathes of buzzing digital textures, field recordings, clattering beats and distorted jazz sax with fizzing orchestral arrangements. Compassion is equal parts disorienting and immersive, balancing bold sweeping gestures and crumbling textures; tracks seemingly disintegrating and reassembling at points across the album. Blending both digital and specially recorded brass, strings and vocals, Barnes’s processing never truly makes it clear what’s new or old, sampled or unique, constantly blurring and toying with the line between digital and acoustic.

God Dethroned – The World’s Ablaze CD/LP (Metal Blade)

Dutch death metal masters God Dethroned make their long-awaited return with new album The World Ablaze. The ten-track beast serves as the third (and final) part of God Dethroned’s World War I trilogy.

Goodbye June – Magic Alley CD (Cotton Valley Music/Interscope)

“A sound that combines elements of early Rolling Stones ramble (and) 1970’s rock stomp, with just enough delicate beauty to invoke the spirit of southern soul.” — Blurt [Vinyl edition due July 7.]

Grateful Dead – Cornell 5/8/77 3xCD/5xLP (Grateful Dead)

Cornell 5/8/77 was recorded live directly from the soundboards by Betty Cantor-Jackson. After several years the master tapes were seemingly lost for good, but that all changed at the end of 2016. The lost tapes, or lost “Betty boards” as they are commonly known, finally made their way back home to the Grateful Dead vault, making it possible to officially bring the world this legendary show just in time for its 40th Anniversary.

Grayscale – Adornment CD (Fearless)

Working with producer Kyle Black (State Champs, Handguns, Hit The Lights) for their Fearless Records debut album, Adornment, Philadelphia-based quintet Grayscale has certainly honed their talent for constructing strong hooks and catchy riffs. Through their unbarred emotion and unique blend of alternative rock and punk roots, the band expand their sonic palette, further illuminating their skill of creating well-narrated stories paired with palpable emotion that urges listeners to dive in and craft their own narratives. [Vinyl edition due June 9.]

Hate – Tremendum CD (Napalm)

Tremendum sets a new and strong opening for the well-known Polish extreme metal act.

The Head And The Heart – Stinson Beach Sessions CD/LP (WB)

Unreleased demos from the writing of the Signs Of Light album and three previously unreleased songs.

Hoops – Routines CD/LP (Fat Possum)

Bloomington, IN based four-piece band Hoops craft hyper-melodic songs, built around power-pop chords, deceptively complex drum patterns, and rock-anthem sentiments that hide some tellingly dark thoughts. Three of the four members write and sing, each a frontman and a sideman simultaneously. During a live show, the bandmates can be seen frequently swapping instruments and positions on stage. The setup isn’t democratic so much as it is simply adaptable and committed: doing what the song demands, getting the sound just right. Hoops’ full-length debut, Routines is a bittersweet and honest record that sounds both warmly familiar and jarringly distinctive.

Ho99o9 – United States Of Horror CD/2xLP+MP3 (Toys Have Powers/999 Deathkult)

Originally from Newark and currently residing in LA, Ho99o9 (pronounced Horror) mix the ferocious sounds of hardcore and punk with politically charged hip-hop. “Ho99o9—theOGM (Jean) and Yeti Bones (Eaddy)—seem to have an innate understanding of punk iconography and why logos and imagery is so important for fans to connect with a band’s message on an emotional level. The visual side of their image feels fresh and authentic and they look like very modern rockstars. The sound of their new album United States Of Horror puts me in mind of the Boredoms, Skinny Puppy or Brainiac at their most abrasive and yes, Bad Brains, although I hasten to add that I say this because both bands are bone-crushingly intense, not because of anything necessarily ‘Afro punk’ related, although there is that, too, naturally” – Dangerous Minds. [Limited color vinyl pressed at 45rpm also available.]

Bert Jansch – Living in the Shadows Pt 2: On The Edge Of A Dream 4xCD/4xLP+MP3 (Earth Recordings)

Following on from Earth’s definitive collection of Jansch’s 1990s works, Living In The Shadows Part 2: On The Edge Of A Dream picks up from where it left off, bringing together Bert Jansch’s final recordings, made between 2000 and 2006. This remarkable anthology documents some of Jansch’s finest work.

Jesu/Sun Kil Moon – 30 Seconds Over Planet Earth CD (Caldo Verde)

Sun Kil Moon and Jesu teamed up for the aptly titled collaborative album Sun Kil Moon/Jesu back in January 2016. Now, a little over a year later, they’re back with a follow-up.

Diana Krall – Turn Up The Quiet CD/2xLP (Verve)

Diana Krall’s latest album celebrates Jazz and the Great American Songbook, reuniting Diana with Grammy Award-winning producer, Tommy LiPuma.

Patti LaBelle – Bel Hommage CD (GPE)

Accompanied by contemporary string and horn arrangements, LaBelle puts her own spin on such classics as James Moody’s “Moody’s Mood For Love” featuring urban contemporary artist Kem; Billie Holliday’s “Don’t Explain”; Jon Hendricks’ “Moanin’” and Leonard Bernstein’s “I Can Cook Too” to name a few.

Lil Darrion – Blame The Streets CD (Black Market)

Darrion gives listeners a vivid view of the streets with flawless flows and beats that have the Northern California knock. Featuring Tresolid, Aziz, Bad Wedda, Breezzee, Young Mezzy.

Little Dragon – Season High CD/LP (Loma Vista/Concord)

Gothenburg, Sweden Grammy-nominated electro-pop outfit Little Dragon follow-up their acclaimed 2014 album Nabuma Rubberband with Season High co-produced by James Ford who also mixed the record. Consequence Of Sound called lead single “High” a “warm slice of alternative R&B” while equally as captivating second single “Sweet” is a saccharine-induced dance floor number framed by lead singer Yukimi’s lush vocals. Yukimi muses, “We want to exist in our own bubble where we can stay curious about sounds. The magic feeling that sounds can sprinkle over any boring day is what got us all hooked. That feeling of escapism…maybe because Gothenburg is a grey place for most of the year, our curse and blessing is that we never quite succeed.” [Limited white color vinyl pressing also available.]

“It took Laura Pergolizzi nearly a decade to find her footing as a solo artist under the initialed name LP. After struggling through the label scene, she ended up turning to writing songs for other musicians just to stay in the game. She wrote or co-wrote tracks for the likes of Backstreet Boys (‘Love Will Keep You Up All Night’), Christina Aguilera (‘Beautiful People’), and Rihanna (‘Cheers (Drink to That)’), eventually earning enough clout to gain attention from Warner Bros. The label signed on for the release of her 2014 album Forever For Now, an LP that finally gave LP the attention she deserved for her unique vocal and musical abilities. Now, she’s gearing up to keep her momentum going with a new record.”

Bill MacKay – Esker CD/LP (Drag City)

Bill MacKay is a musician and a musician’s friend – a genial guitarist/composer/improviser based in Chicago who has energized the experimental folk, rock and avant scenes around town with his polyglot approach to the guitar, combining the folk of Appalachia, the blues and gospel with rock, jazz, western-country and an array of eastern modes.

Phil Manzanera – Live At The Curious Arts Festival CD (earMUSIC)

Live release by the British guitarist best known for his work with Roxy Music.

Walter Martin – My Kinda Music CD/LP+MP3 (Family Jukebox)

New album from Walter Martin of the Walkmen. My Kinda Music is the follow-up to 2014’s We’re All Young Together and continues his work in the children’s genre. First single, “Hey Matt: features Matt Berninger of The National.

Steve Mayone – Sideways Rain CD (Janglewood)

Sideways Rain contains all the benchmarks of Mayone’s music: Beatle-esque pop; acoustic ballads reminiscent of Bob Dylan; and snatches of the Grateful Dead’s twang and storytelling. As Shindig raves; “[Mayone] switches easily from rootsy Americana to well-crafted power pop [and] he proves himself equally adept at country ballads based on banjo and fiddle.”

Juana Molina – Halo CD/LP (Crammed Discs)

Halo is Juana Molina’s seventh album, and it pursues the experimental path she began years ago, marking a new milestone in the evolution of her own, unmistakable voice. She’s “on an evolutionary journey of her own devising” (Pitchfork), and pushes once more her “eerie, hypnotic” music “to increasingly haunting heights” (as written by SPIN magazine about her previous record). The 12 tracks on Halo abound with hypnotic rhythms which seem to draw their energy from immemorial rituals; with timbral explorations and ever-changing soundscapes; with mysterious lyrics often touching on witchcraft, premonition and dreams, always used as metaphors for emotional states; with voices which sometimes move away from word and meaning to be reduced to abstract phonemes and onomatopoeia. The album features contributions by Odin Schwartz and Diego Lopez de Arcaute (who have both been playing live with Juana for a number of years), and Eduardo Bergallo (who has taken part in the mixing of her previous albums), with Deerhoof’s John Dieterich making a guest appearance on a couple of tracks.

Moon Duo – Occult Architecture Vol. 2 CD/LP (Sacred Bones)

Following the Yin (feminine, darkness, night, earth) represented on Occult Architecture Vol. 1, Vol. 2 presents the Yang. Yang means “the bright side of the hill” and is associated with the male, sun, light and the spirit of heaven, and as such Vol. 2 explores the light and airy elements of Moon Duo’s complex psyche.

John Moreland – Big Bad Luv CD/LP (4AD)

Big Bad Love marks a change in Moreland’s sound and outlook on life. With lyrics that are as intense and unfiltered as his earlier work, Moreland delves into finding peace within. He also branches out sonically, which is injected with a heavier dose of rock ‘n’ roll.

Motionless In White – Graveyard Shift CD (Roadrunner)

New album from the Scranton, PA metalcore band.

Mythic Sunship – Land Between Rivers CD/LP (El Pariso)

With a mold shaped around Copenhagen’s deep underground, like that of the avant-noise-punk venue Mayhem and label Posh Isolation, Mythic Sunship cuts a sharp edge into their 10+ minutes sagas, often churning out tracks with seemingly endless amounts of energy.

Niia – I CD (Atlantic)

A slow-burning, intimate document that tips its hand towards genres as disparate as the glory days of trip-hop, mid-tempo disco, and misty jazz, while retaining an impressively unified mood evoking modern noir.

Nite Jewel – Real High CD/LP (Gloriette)

Recorded over the course of four years, with the help of Cole M. G. N., these songs of absent love and relentless nostalgia present the most personal, lyric driven Nite Jewel record to date. With everything from expansive, futuristic balladry to mellow dance floor hits, Real High acts as the artists most focused and bold effort yet. Featuring contributions from long-time collaborators such as Dâm-Funk, Droop-E, and Julia Holter, the timeless production, unique voice, and pristine song-craft of Real High create an irresistible combination that only seeks to enhance its affecting message.

Oxbow – Thin Black Duke CD/LP (Hydrahead)

On their seventh album, Oxbow’s elusive brand of harmonic unrest has absorbed the ornate and ostentatious palate of baroque pop into their sound, pushing their polarized dynamics into a scope that spans between sublime and completely unnerving.

Penguin Cafe – The Imperfect Sea CD/LP+MP3 (Erased Tapes)

A penguin stands in the middle of a scorching desert, far away from its natural habitat. This mirrors composer Arthur Jeffes’ journey and exploration into a new musical territory. Penguin Cafe have evolved into something of their own at the hands of Arthur who started the band in 2009 with the continuation and homage to his father’s legacy, the late Simon Jeffes’ Penguin Cafe Orchestra. Now, their upcoming album echoes reminiscent sounds that embrace the new.

Predominantly self-composed, the new album also features covers of electronic works by Simian Mobile Disco and Kraftwerk, along with a re-working of Simon’s “Now Nothing.” Arthur has developed from the traditional folk and jazz heritage Penguin Cafe Orchestra is known for into another realm of blissful ambience and dance music, recreated using strictly acoustic elements.

Perfume Genius – No Shape CD/LP+MP3 (Matador)

2014’s Too Bright showcased Mike Hadreas stepping out saucily onto a bigger stage, expressing, with the production help of Portishead’s Adrian Utley, emotions arranged all along the slippery continuum from rage to irony to love. Here in 13 new ferocious and sophisticated tracks, Mike Hadreas and his collaborators blow through church music, makeout music, an array of the gothier radio popular formats, rhythm and blues, art pop, krautrock, queer soul, the RCA Studio B sound, and then also collect some of the sounds that only exist inside Freddy Krueger. [Limited color vinyl pressing also available.]

Allison Pierce – Year Of The Rabbit CD (SME Masterworks)

Allison Pierce is launching the second chapter of her distinguished career with her new album Year Of The Rabbit, an eloquent straight-from-the-heart solo debut. The new album finds Pierce transformed following two decades of recording and performing with her sister Catherine as The Pierces. The first single “Evidence” is presented in classic folk-rock style with a jangling 12-string electric guitar, cantering groove and sultry overdubbed harmonies that frame Pierce’s contemporary retelling of the myth of the Original Sin. The lilting, piquant “Fool Him” explores the travails of would-be lovers who can’t seem to get in sync, while “I Can See For Miles” ponders losing someone, longing for them and looking for them everywhere. Year Of The Rabbit unfurls in distinct, insinuating increments, a product not just of the songs themselves but also Pierce’s ability to fully inhabit them, subtly adapting her vocal inflections from song to song to accommodate the musical atmospheres.

Asian Fields Variations marks the first time that clarinettist Louis Sclavis, violinist Dominique Pifarély and cellist Vincent Courtois have recorded as a trio.

Rev. Sekou – In Times Like These CD/LP (Zent)

In Times Like These is an intense blend of late North Mississippi hill country music, Arkansas Delta blues, 1960s rock and roll, Memphis soul, Chuck Berry St. Louis vibes, and Pentecostal steel guitar. Written in the shadow of the divisive 2016 election, the album is testament to the enduring power of protest music and a call-to-arms for a new generation looking to resist.

Chris Robinson Brotherhood’s acclaimed live album series Betty’s Blends returns with Volume 3: Self-Rising, Southern Blends. Recorded and mixed live from the soundboard by legendary Grateful Dead archivist and recording engineer Betty Cantor Jackson, this latest edition captures the CRB on a Southern swing through Atlanta, Raleigh and Charleston in November 2015. The set includes original staple CRB material like “Clear Blue Sky,” “Roan County Banjo” and “Oak Apple Day,” but focuses on the band’s sprawling selection of cover material ranging from Allen Toussaint’s “Get Out Of My Life Woman” to the Leiber/Stoller classic “I’m A Hog For You,” Bob Dylan’s “She Belongs To Me” to the Slim Harpo rarity “The Music’s Hot.” It also marks the first release in the series with current CRB drummer, Tony Leone. In Robinson’s own words, “With Betty, we trust her sonic sensibilities and give her the space and freedom to do what the woman does, and what she does is beautiful and unique. It’s the stuff rock ‘n’ roll dreams and recordings are made of.”

Rodrigo Y Gabriela – Rodrigo Y Gabriela 2xCD+DVD (ATO)

2017 marks the tenth anniversary of the release of Rodrigo y Gabriela’s breakthrough self-titled album. To celebrate the occasion, the acclaimed Mexican duo have remastered the album and dipped into their archive to share a scintillating live CD/DVD recorded in 2006 at The Olympia Theatre in Paris. [Vinyl edition due June 2.]

Peter Rowan – My Aloha! CD (Ominivore)

Americana icon Peter Rowan has had a storied career. Whether singing and playing guitar for Bill Monroe’s Bluegrass Boys, opening for The Doors as part of Earth Opera (with David Grisman), having Sir George Martin produce his music while a member of Seatrain, performing with Jerry Garcia in Old & In The Way, writing “Panama Red” for the New Riders Of The Purple Sage or appearing on an Art Of Noise album, Rowan has been recording and entertaining for nearly 50 years. Recently, when not touring the world, Peter Rowan could be found on the beaches and in the clubs of Hawaii, absorbing the sounds that filled the airwaves in the days of Jimmie Rodgers and Mae Belle Carter, and adapting them to a brand-new set of his own songs. My Aloha! demonstrates how Hawaiian steel guitar and ukulele were an influence on foundational bluegrass, folk, and country artists like Bill Monroe, even if the connection is not immediately obvious.

Joan Shelley – Joan Shelley CD/LP (No Quarter)

In December 2016, after more than a year of touring the world behind her 2015 LP Over and Even, Joan Shelley and Nathan Salsburg headed a few hours north to Chicago, where they joined Jeff Tweedy in Wilco’s Loft studio for five days. Spencer Tweedy, home from college, joined on drums, while James Elkington (a collaborator to both Tweedy and Salsburg) shifted between piano and resonator guitar. Jeff added electric accents and some bass, but mostly, he helped the band stay out of its own way. Half of these songs are first takes.

Slowdive – Slowdive CD/LP+MP3 (Dead Oceans)

UK shoegaze pioneers Slowdive enter their second act and offer up a fourth studio opus, their first in 22 years. Self-titled with quiet confidence, Slowdive’s stargazing alchemy is set to further entrance the faithful while beguiling a legion of fresh ears. Deftly swerving what co-vocalist/guitarist Rachel Goswell terms “a trip down memory lane,” these eight new tracks are simultaneously expansive and the sonic pathfinders’ most direct material to date. “It’s poppier than I thought it was going to be,” notes principal songwriter Neil Halstead, who was the primary architect of 1995’s previous full-length transmission Pygmalion. This time out the group dynamic was all-important. “When you’re in a band and you do three records, there’s a continuous flow and a development. For us, that flow re-started with us playing live again and that has continued into the record.” “There’s a different energy about it,” adds drummer Simon Scott. “It took ages to get back together and write songs and for it to click in the studio, but this album doesn’t feel like a bolt-on — it’s got an energy that’s as vibrant as Souvlaki and Just For A Day. It feels very relevant to now.” [Limited edition silver vinyl pressing also available.]

Sóley – Endless Summer CD/LP+MP3 (Morr Music)

Endless Summer sees the acclaimed musician from Iceland explore the more optimistic, sun-drenched corners of her songwriting. Comprised of eight songs, it is an album that’s grounded in fertile wisdom. Not just an ethereal dream of love and light, but a subtle, accumulative wisdom, a conscious choice to cling to vitality. One might say that one of Sóley’s signatures is the childlike wonder in her lyrics, and Endless Summer delivers the same wonder, but with a kind of reverence for it, for she’s no longer a wanderer in a nightmare, but an enchanted lover of mystery.

Chris Stapleton – From A Room: Volume 1 CD/LP+MP3 (Mercury Nashville)

Chris Stapleton follows up his Grammy award-winning 2015 debut Traveller with not one but two albums in 2017. From A Room: Volume 1 is the first, while the second installment From A Room: Volume 2 will appear later in the year. “I’m real proud of this record,” Stapleton exclaimed at a record release party at RCA Studio A in Nashville, TN. “We made it right here in (RCA Studio A) like the last one. We camped out in here…and had a lot of fun recording things.” Produced by Dave Cobb and recorded live with Stapleton’s band, the nine-track affair includes eight originals co-written by Stapleton and the lone cover “Last Thing I Needed, First Thing This Morning” which has been recorded by Willie Nelson. Chris’ soulful vocals and understated guitar work are supported here by Cobb on acoustic guitar, Morgane Stapleton on harmony vocals, J.T. Cure on bass, Derek Mixon on drums, Mickey Raphael on harmonica, Robby Turner on pedal steel, and Mike Webb on keys.

State Champs – Around The World And Back CD+DVD (Pure Noise)

Fresh off the heels of touring Australia with 5 Seconds Of Summer, State Champs release their sophomore record. The 5-piece continues to play captivating and addictive pop-rock. Includes a DVD featuring two new studio tracks, two live tracks and two acoustic tracks. [Vinyl edition due May 19.]

Christopher Paul Stelling – Itinerant Arias CD/LP+MP3 (ANTI-)

There is a fearless quality to the music of Christopher Paul Stelling. A voice that sounds both old and young, an effortless yet intricate finger-picking guitar style and lyrics that are both dramatic, and intensely confessional. It’s a sound that channels the restless spirit of a young man who left home to travel the country, haunting and impassioned songs formed by endless nights alone on stage with a guitar, playing to packed houses, other times to nearly empty rooms. Stelling estimates that he’s played over four hundred shows in just the past three years. It places him within a longstanding tradition that serves to nurture one’s character and art.

Bruce Sudano – 21st Century World CD/LP (Purple Heart Record Co.)

Singer-songwriter Bruce Sudano has a storied history in the world of music. His work became involved with the raw expression of internal challenges central to everyday life. From his chart debut in the 1970s with “Tighter, Tighter” (Alive N Kickin’) and “Heaven Knows” (Brooklyn Dreams) to co-writing hits for Donna Summer, Dolly Parton, Michael Jackson to his 2015 single “One Beautiful Life” from The Burbank Sessions, his work crosses genres and spans several generations of listeners allowing intimate performances at full power.

Sun Ra – The Magic City [Reissue/1966] CD/LP (Cosmic Myth)

The boundaries of Sun Ra’s self-proclaimed “space jazz” underwent a transformation in the mid-’60s. The Magic City is an aural snapshot of that metamorphic process.

“By 1995’s The Great Annihilator, Swans weren’t imitating pop music so much as swallowing its features to create something monstrous. [The album] documents a configuration of Swans that wore pop, country, and lounge stylings in a way that no longer clashed with the malevolence of the group’s spirit. This deluxe reissue also includes Michael Gira’s solo LP Drainland. More droning and abstract than The Great Annihilator, Drainland imports Jarboe and multi-instrumentalist/drummer Bill Rieflin from Swans, suggesting that if it isn’t a Swans album in name, it shares the same disposition. Again, Gira and company play up contrasts by using acoustic guitar, found sounds, and wide-open space as vehicles for immersive negativity.” – Pitchfork

The Sword – Greetings From… CD/LP (Razor & Tie)

There’s an unspoken edict handed down through the ages when it comes to rock bands: there are no rules. Austin, Texas metal luminaries The Sword – John Cronise (vocals, guitar), Kyle Shutt (guitar), Bryan Richie (bass), and Santiago Vela III (drums) – cut out boundaries since day one. Their style never stood predicated on a trend or a template. They always create what feels right and let the results speak for themselves. Greetings From… is a collection of nine live tracks spanning the band’s career. From Age Of Winters to their latest, High Country, Greeting From… creates a seamlessly crafted cocktail showcasing the music of The Sword throughout the past decade.

Taj Mahal + Keb’ Mo’ – TajMo CD/LP (Concord)

TajMo is a collaboration between two generations of blues giants, converging their singular talents for the first time ever on an album of original songs and covers, featuring cameos from Bonnie Raitt, Joe Walsh, Sheila E., Lizz Wright, and many more. TajMo brings out the best in both artists, with the pair merging their distinctive voices, personalities and guitar styles to create vibrant, immediate music that’s firmly rooted in tradition yet ruled by a playful sense of adventure. “Don’t Leave Me Here” is a love letter to the south that sounds like an instant classic, and “Soul” interweaves world music with blues in a way that only Taj could pull off. Taj and Keb’ put a soulful spin on Mayer’s “Waiting On The World To Change,” on which Raitt lends her unmistakable vocals. The 11-song set also includes covers of John Mayer and The Who.

Toxic: Mat Walerian/Matthew Shipp/William Parker – This Is Beautiful Because We Are Beautiful People CD (ESP-Disk Ltd.)

Various Artists – Cover Stories: Brandi Carlile Celebrates 10 Years Of The Story (An Album To Benefit War Child) CD/2xLP (Legacy)

This year marks the 10th Anniversary of Brandi Carlile’s breakthrough album The Story. To celebrate she recruited artists like Dolly Parton, Kris Kristofferson, Pearl Jam, The Avett Brothers, Adele and many more for this Cover Stories album to benefit the charity War Child. Brandi describes this project as “…a David and Goliath story. Since becoming a mother, the reality of a child s beautiful little life being torn apart by war felt like too big of a problem for me. So I asked my heroes and friends to help me launch a rock at the giant that is our refugee crisis and help in the only way we know how, through the power of music.”

Various Artists – Follow The Sun CD/2xLP+MP3 (Anthology Recordings)

Follow The Sun compiles twenty cuts dug from dusty bins by Mikey Young (Total Control, Eddy Current Suppression Ring) and Keith Abrahamsson (founder/head of A&R at Anthology Recordings) surveying the sought-after sound of Australia’s lesser and greater known moments of ‘70s rock, folk, and their in-between offspring. Follow The Sun filters the sublime and sometimes subversive psychedelic airwaves transmitted around the world from America’s terrestrial platforms during the golden age of gentle, exploratory FM through a distinctly Australian lens.

Wale – SHiNE CD (Atlantic)

The Grammy-nominated rapper’s fifth studio SHiNE hosts several of his previous one-off releases, including the Lil Wayne-assisted “Running Back” and “Fashion Week” featuring G-Eazy. The features are scatted across genres as varied hitmakers like Major Lazer, J Balvin, Travis Scott, Wizkid and Chris Brown appear on the 14-track set. “It’s just music,” he told REVOLT. “It ain’t necessarily a book this time.” The D.C. native is exploring newer terrain within this new creative process, which he describes as much more musically-driven than his previous efforts. “It’s more so a bunch of emotions that you gonna feel,” he described. “I’m just trying to paint pictures. It ain’t too overly thought of this time, it’s still good music.” While he’s shown signs of this melodic-focused approach on past thumpers like “White Linen” and “Bad,” Wale’s latest single, “My PYT,” shows his vision to take it step further. Interpolating elements and grooves from timeless material from Marvin Gaye (“Sexual Healing”) and Michael Jackson (“PYT”), the record features Wale maxing in his pocket, doing everything from rapping to crooning.

Wooden Wand – Clipper Ship CD/LP (Three Lobed)

In a world of guitar players, James “Wooden Wand” Toth remains first and foremost a songwriter and lyricist. Clipper Ship, however, presents a break in tradition: in attempting to emancipate himself from old habits, Toth wrote most of the songs on Clipper Ship ‘music first,’ adding lyrics later, a reversal of the tried and true method that has made him one of the most prolific and respected songwriters of his generation. The result is the most democratically-conceived, multi-layered, and musically sophisticated album in the vast Wooden Wand discography.

Wrekonize – Into The Further CD (Strange Music)

Delving deeper into the psyche of Wrekonize, Into The Further showcases his diverse stylistic approach to lyrical storytelling, giving you a look behind the shades of one of Strange Music’s most proficient MC’s.

This Week’s Vinyl Exclusives:

Vincent Ahehehinnou – Best Woman [Reissue/1978] LP (Analog Africa)

Vinyl reissue of Vincent Ahehehinnou’s first post-Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou album, originally released in 1978.

Arca – Arca LP (XL)

Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Arca is the first to feature the Venezuela-born, London-based producer’s untreated singing voice. He sings in Spanish – the language of his childhood home, Venezuela. It stands as a defiant, delicate statement of intent, and cements his position as one of this turbulent decade’s defining musicians. Previous work has incorporated snatches of song and Arca’s rapping, but on Arca, his voice is front-and-center on eight of the album’s 13 tracks.

Autopsy – Mental Funeral [Reissue/1991] LP (Peaceville)

Picture disc vinyl edition of the death metal band’s 1991 album featuring the iconic Kev Walker cover artwork in a special cut-out sleeve.

Bad Brains – Build A Nation [Reissue/2007] LP (Megaforce)

2007’s Build A Nation served as Bad Brains’ first proper studio album in over a decade and featured all of the original members: HR, Darryl Jenifer, Dr. Know and Earl Hudson. Produced by long-time fan, Adam Yauch aka MCA of the Beastie Boys, Build A Nation was a rock-solid return to form for the band who helped define American punk and hardcore music.

Bibio – Beyond Serious 12”+MP3 (Warp)

With this new EP Bibio continues down the path he started with 2016’s A Mineral Love and The Serious EP. The warm vibes of this new four-track 12” come just in time for you to enjoy with the onset of spring weather.

Blood, Sweat And Tears – Bloodlines 4xLP (Analogue Productions)

This 200gm vinyl box set tells the story behind the groundbreaking horn band. The four-album set includes: Child Is Father To The Man (1968), Blood, Sweat And Tears (1968), Blood, Sweat And Tears 3 (1970), and B, S & T 4 (1971).

Michelle Branch – Hopeless Romantic 2xLP (Verve)

Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Produced by Patrick Carney (The Black Keys) and Gus Seyffert (Beck, Norah Jones, SIA), Hopeless Romantic weaves a tale of love-lost and found.

Rusty Bryant – Fire Eater [Reissue/1971] LP (Prestige)

Vinyl LP pressing of this 1971 album from the jazz saxophonist. An unsung monster in the pantheon of exceptional soul-jazz outings from the Prestige catalog, Fire Eater finds Bryant grooving hard in a combo that featured Idris Muhammad on drums, Wilbert Longmire on guitar, and both Bill Mason and Leon Spencer Jr. on organ.

The Bug Vs Earth – Concrete Desert 2xLP+12” (Ninja Tune)

Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. “This is a total dream-come-true collaboration for fans of pulverizingly heavy music: Dylan ‘Extra Low Frequency Version’ Carson’s Earth project and Kevin ‘Skeng’ Martin’s The Bug, producing together. After two tracks together last year, the pair have now made a full album, and it’s a seething, bristling blast of a listen.” – Norman UK

Alessandro Cortini (Nine Inch Nails) and Japanese noise legend Masami Akita (Merzbow) share a mutual love for the EMS Synthi, a British synthesizer from the early ’70s notorious for its patch matrix, portability, and distinct tone. Astonishingly, these two disparate artists meld into a single sound as they flex the analog circuitry of the EMS Synthi in new ways; giving this classic synth a modern workout and proving that, in capable hands, a 40-year-old analog synthesizer is a tool for the ages.

Helge Sten aka Deathprod’s core trilogy of albums, available for the very first time on 180gm vinyl. Based in Oslo, Norway, composer Helge Sten has been crafting this music since the early-90s, a deeply atmospheric, grainy minimalism that slows time down and explores the very particles of sound itself. The Deathprod concept arose in 1991 when Sten realized his complex array of homemade electronics, samplers, sound processing and analogue effects – cumulatively known as the “Audio Virus” – could add a musical dimension above and beyond the merely technical. Almost obsolete samplers and playback devices distort and transform sounds into unrecognizable mutations of their former selves. The virus breeds layers of complex and overlapping sonic debris, creating a kind of cellular composition.

Descendents – Everything Sucks [Reissue/1996] LP+7” (Epitaph)

Deluxe 20th Anniversary edition of Descendents 1996 masterwork pressed on 180gm vinyl including a 7” with a pair of unreleased bonus tracks.

Tica Douglas – Our Lady Star Of The Sea, Help And Protect Us LP (Team Love)

Tica Douglas returns with a new album. If 2014’s Joey was about turning inwards, these songs were about looking outwards. Joey had a raw, concentrated purview: Tica’s quietly turbulent coming-of-age as a gender outlier. Lady Star, on the other hand, is the personal turning a little more political – and spiritual. Part of this can be attributed to Tica’s pursuing a master’s of divinity right after finishing Joey. While the former album is characterized by a youthful longing for answers and a bedroom-folk sound, Lady Star yields to a deeper interest – and trust – in the unknown and the unpredictable.

Audiophile 200gm vinyl pressing. Released in 1950, this was Ellington’s first LP, and he used the new medium to stretch out four of his biggest hits. The arrangements are jaw-droppingly gorgeous and the sound just slightly less so.

Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. April 2017 sees Fujiya and Miyagi wrapping up a unique year-long musical project that represents one of their most adventurous to date. EP3 joins the previous two to make up this album, a carefully staged project that sees the group traverse disco, electro, pop, and the now synonymous 1970s Germany-inspired groove they so seamlessly ooze. For album number six, the result is one that simultaneously captures the fizzy energy, elongated jams and melodic intuition of previous releases, whilst still cracking un-trodden ground.

Sam Gopal – Escalator [Reissue/1969] LP (Morgan Blue Town)

Something of a classic of psychedelic acid rock, complete with fuzzed guitars, but rooted by its Eastern percussion, Escalator includes one cover, a rocked-up version of Donovan’s “Season Of The Witch,” whilst a projected single release included a version of Willie Dixon’s “Back Door Man,” which managed to be even heavier than the interpretation by the Doors on their first album, released two years earlier.

Mickey Hart – Planet Drum 2xLP (UMe)

The 25th Anniversary first-time vinyl edition featuring three new bonus tracks. Planet Drum, the voice to Hart’s book of the same name, represents a musical atlas of the World Beat.

Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. New album from the Canadian thrash metal masters — who are celebrating their 30th anniversary this year.

Ironing Music – Ironing Music LP (Medical Records)

Vinyl reissue of a very obscure Australian gem from the 1980s. Ironing Music was a three-piece band from Brisbane. They originally formed in 1984 as a result of their collective love for New Order, Human League and eventually Jean Michel Jarre and Cabaret Voltaire. Comprised of bass and electric guitar, Yamaha DX-7, melodica and an 808, they recorded a 12” single as their sole output in 1985. They also recorded demos in hopes of landing a LP deal which unfortunately didn’t attract any takers at the time. The LP presented here included the original 4 track single as well as hand-picked demos which nicely congeal to form a well-rounded LP documenting the band’s brief existence. Limited color vinyl pressing.

Bert Jansch – Birthday Blues [Reissue/1969] LP (Earth Recordings)

Bert Jansch – Rosemary Lane [Reissue/1971] LP (Earth Recordings)

Bert Jansch’s freewheeling fifth album, Birthday Blues, occupies a unique place in his solo discography. Released in 1969, the same year Basket of Light propelled Pentangle into the UK pop charts, Birthday Blues almost sounds like a Pentangle LP missing John Renbourn and Jacqui McShee. By the time Rosemary Lane was released in 1971, Bert Jansch had covered a great deal of territory on numerous albums as a solo artist, collaborations with John Renbourn and records by the band in which he and Renbourn sang and played guitar, Pentangle. Returning to the intimate economy of his self-titled debut LP from a half-dozen or so years earlier, Rosemary Lane was recorded on portable equipment by engineer/producer Bill Leader and featured Jansch with no accompaniment save his guitar and voice.

Jan Jelinek – Loop-Finding-Jazz-Records [Reissue/2001] 2xLP (Fatiche)

Faitiche presents a long-lost vinyl album. Since 2003, Jan Jelinek’s Loop-Finding-Jazz-Records, originally released in 2001 on ~scape, existed only as a download. Now the album is available again on vinyl, as a double LP with two bonus tracks. “Don’t be misled by the title, though for there isn’t a finger-snapping rhythm bebop lead anywhere on the album. Instead, Jelinek chooses to explore the visual effect moiré – two shifting patterns creating an implied third dimension – in the audio realm.” — Alternative Press

Bap Kennedy – Reckless Heart LP (Last Chance)

Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Steve Earle described Bap Kennedy as “the best songwriter I ever saw.” Kennedy’s new (and final album — he passed away last November) is “a set of solidly constructed songs that generally lean towards country rock with simple chord structures and strong lyrical and melodic hooks. In general, the instrumentation is restricted to rhythm and lead guitars, piano, percussion and bass, augmented at times by organ and accordion.” – Folking.com

Charles Kynard – Afro-Disiac [Reissue/1970] LP (Prestige)

The first-ever audiophile-quality release of this long out of print soul jazz stunner features Charles Kynard flanked by a who’s-who of exceptional talent that includes Bernard Purdie on drums, Jimmy Lewis on electric bass, Grant Green on guitar, and Houston Person on tenor saxophone.

L/F/D/M – Tele- 12” (Medical Records)

British producer Richard Smith creates genre-bending techno that incorporates motifs from the past while presenting the tunes in a definite forward advancing trajectory. By integrating influences from ’90s electronic music and classics such as DAF and Severed Heads, L/F/D/M presents four cuts that are sure to pique the interest of fans of modern techno who have an appreciation for IDM, classic Detroit techno and are searching for something to diversify their repertoire.

Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. For the uniformed Me First And The Gimme Gimmes, consisting of NOFX frontman Fat Mike, Lagwagon frontman Joey Cape, Foo Fighting Chris Shiflett, Lagwagon drummer Dave Raun, and the unparalleled silky vocals of Spike Slawson, have been banging out other peoples’ hits for over two decades now. So, what is really left to say about punk super-group and cover band extraordinaire? After seven studio albums, a live record and too many singles to count, they’ve tackled just about every genre under the sun. Be it Motown, Country, show tunes, Japanese Pop (sung in Japanese!), these seasoned punk rock pros have triumphed on every occasion in a way only the Gimmes could. With such an extensive and wide ranging catalog, where does one begin?

Gary Moore – After The War [Reissue/1989] LP (Virgin)

Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. 180gm vinyl repress of the eighth studio album by Irish guitarist Gary Moore. The track “Led Clones” features Ozzy Osbourne sharing lead vocal duties.

The Obsessives – The Obsessives LP (Lame-O)

Continuing even further along their indie rock inspirations, The Obsessives has found an acclivity for pop hooks and vibrant instrumentation that give a nod to their heroes (even naming a song referencing listening to a Pixies record), while also fitting alongside the top artists of the modern indie/emo scene.

Gilbert O’ Sullivan – Himself [Reissue/1971] LP (Union Square)

Gilbert O’ Sullivan the superstar who topped both the UK & US charts in the ‘70s and is still a well-loved, respected and endeared figurehead of the songwriting community. With three Ivor Novello Awards including Songwriter Of The Year in 1973, it is no surprise of the depth and quality of his continuing legacy. Himself is a rich tapestry of devastatingly poignant examples of masterful songwriting.

PAZ – PAZ Are Back [Reissue/1982] LP (BBE)

Recorded during the summer of 1980 and originally released in 1982 on Spotlight Records, PAZ Are Back was the second (and arguably the finest) album by the London jazz collective, founded by vibraphonist, composer and arranger Dick Crouch.

Porcupine Tree – The Sky Moves Sideways [Reissue/1995] 2xLP (Kscope)

Continuing Kscope’s vinyl reissue series, this 1995 Porcupine Tree album is regarded by many fans as one of the band’s most crafted and melodic releases.

Xavier Rudd – Live In The Netherlands LP (SideOneDummy)

Released last week on CD – now available on vinyl. Live In The Netherlands is the start-to finish live set from Xavier Rudd’s incredible 28-date sold-out 2016 European tour, recorded on the final night in Utrecht. During these shows, Xavier and his band performed 18 of his greatest songs, including “Come Let Go,” “Spirit Bird,” and the global hit “Follow The Sun.”

Leon Russel – Carney [Reissue/1972] LP (Analogue Productions)

Audiophile 200gm vinyl reissue. With his trademark top hat, hair well past his shoulders, a long, lush beard, an Oklahoma drawl and his fingers splashing two-fisted barrelhouse piano chords, future Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Leon Russell cut a flamboyant figure in the early 1970s.

Fred Schneider & The Superions – The Vertical Mind LP (HHBTM)

Since their Christmas record a couple of years back, pop dadaists Fred Schneider & The Superions have been roaming through their apartment, looking for the next party. Fred writes the words and sings the songs. Noah and Dan make the music. Blame it on the wine. Blame it on Orlando, Florida. The Superions go where no one else dares to go — into the silly, the ridiculous, the fun, the insane.

Curtis Stigers/Danish Radio Big Band – One More For The Road LP (Concord Jazz)

Released in January on CD – now available on vinyl. Recorded live in Copenhagen, One More For The Road features Curtis Stigers along with The Danish Radio Big Band celebrating some of Frank Sinatra’s most cherished songs. Encompassing 10 covers, each song was hand-picked by Stigers to honor one of his musical heroes.

Sun Ra – Singles 2 3xLP+MP3 (Strut)

The second volume of definitive singles released by jazz maverick Sun Ra during his Earth years, spanning 1962 to 1991.

Taiwan Housing Project play bewitching pop songs which could bubble up comfortably in a reform school disco or European youth hall.

Twin Peaks – Urbs In Horto 2xLP (Grand Jury)

This special double LP features live performances from Twin Peaks’ sold out hometown shows at the Metro and Thalia Hall in Chicago, IL from December 2016 and comes in a gatefold package designed by the band.

U2 – 18 Singles [2006] 2xLP (Interscope)

18 Singles is U2’s most recent greatest hits album. Originally released in 2006 and featuring two new songs, “The Saints Are Coming” (with Green Day) and “Window In The Skies.”

The Sound Of Jazz brought together 32 leading musicians from the swing era including Count Basie, Lester Young, Ben Webster, Billie Holiday, Jo Jones and Coleman Hawkins; the Chicago style players of the same era, like Henry “Red” Allen, Vic Dickenson, and Pee Wee Russell; and younger ‘modernist’ musicians such as Gerry Mulligan, Thelonious Monk, and Jimmy Giuffre. These players played separately with their compatriots but also joined to combine various styles in one group, such as Red Allen’s group and the group backing Billie Holiday on “Fine And Mellow”. Columbia Records released this LP in 1958 that is actually a rehearsal that preceded the telecast (recorded on December 4, 1957 at Columbia’s 30th Street studios), and is not its soundtrack.

Joe Walsh – The Smoker You Drink The Player You Get [Reissue/1973] LP (Analogue Productions)

200gm audiophile vinyl repress. In between his stints with the James Gang and the Eagles, Joe Walsh tackled his second solo studio album The Smoker You Drink The Player You Get which became his most successful solo outing.

Warfather – The Grey Eminence LP (Greyhaze)

Featuring Steve Tucker (Morbid Angel), Warfather’s follow-up to their 2014 debut album Orchestrating The Apocalypse was produced by death metal icon and studio wizard Erik Rutan (Hate Eternal, Morbid Angel). The collaboration marks the first-time Tucker and Rutan have worked together since Morbid Angel’s Gateways To Annihilation in 2000.

Charlie Watts Meets The Danish Radio Big Band – Live At Danish Radio Concert Hall, Copenhagen 2xLP (Impulse!)

Recorded live in Copenhagen in 2010, Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts joins The Danish Radio Big Band for a legendary one-off concert. On this release, Watts revisits his musical past of living in Demark briefly in the early 1960s sitting in with jazz and blues bands.

“Yamasuki began as a dance craze in five steps — full-body instructions are on the album cover. Its mastermind was Daniel Vangarde, a French auteur of the concept album who skipped and pirouetted across genres and cultures with Gainsbourgian whimsy. Written mostly with his Belgian producer-partner Jean Kluger, Le Monde Fabuleux Des Yamasuki features a mesmerizing, detailed aesthetic concept: a children’s chorus singing fast-paced melodies, mostly in Japanese, tracked over heavy bass and coolly fatbacked drumming. The songs are short and tight, and the album flies by like a shamelessly fun, intricately planned costume party.” – Aquarium Drunkard

Cassettes:

Afghan Whigs – In Spades (Sub Pop)

“This is the first time since Black Love [the Whigs’ 1996 noir masterpiece] that we’ve done a full-blown band album,” Greg Dulli says. The joys, sorrows, and upheavals of innocence and experience echo throughout In Spades: it powerfully documents where The Afghan Whigs have been, and where they might go next.

Bonny ‘Prince’ Billy – Best Troubador (Drag City)

With Best Troubador, Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy pays homage to a long-time and forever hero, the late Merle Haggard.

Alice Coltrane remains a singular figure on the fringe of American music but her appeal is growing. While Coltrane’s music is gaining wider acceptance there is an entire era of her recorded output that remains obscure, almost as if by design. Her four self-published, devotional albums of the ‘80s and ‘90s were recorded during a period in which she had withdrawn from secular life. They were manufactured and distributed in limited quantities amongst her spiritual community. Operating outside of the constraints of the commercial recording industry Coltrane was free of external pressures whether monetary or deadline. She recorded this music totally on her own terms. The resulting compositions synthesized her spiritual and musical outlook into a highly original work that is unique unto herself.

Taiwan Housing Project – Veblen Death Mask (Kill Rock Stars)

Taiwan Housing Project play bewitching pop songs which could bubble up comfortably in a reform school disco or European youth hall.